Cobra F-Max Irons

The Cobra F-Max irons are lightweight, forgiving, and some of the easiest irons you’ll ever hit. If you’re looking to pick up the game, or just need help getting the basics down, the F-Max irons are a tough club to beat. Using ultralight construction, Cobra designed these irons to make players with moderate swing speeds more successful. The F-Max irons are also available in the One Length configuration.

Like many golfers, my first introduction to the game came from my dad when I was a kid. To this day, we still share a common interest in the game, and he definitely enjoys having some insight into my “golf reviews.” I’m sharing this brief insight with you for a specific reason. Listen, even as an open-minded, independent golf reviewer, I still have biases and preferences. I feel I can fairly review and critique most, if not all, equipment but I may have to put myself in different shoes to do so. Fortunately, for the Cobra F-Max irons, my dad’s first impression was the perfect telling of these irons…

First Impressions

I was outside of my house taking pictures for some reviews when my dad walked up and picked up one of the Cobra F-Max irons. His first words out of his mouth were, “man, these seem really light!” No hi, hello, how are you, just “man, these seem really light!” The thing is, he was exactly right. Coming in with swingweights of C9 through D0 in the wedges, the F-Max is incredibly light.

The F-Max club itself is every bit of a Super Game Improvement (SGI) iron. Thick soles and toplines, significant offset, and large footprint make for a lot of club to hit the ball. For the audience the F-Max irons are geared for, this should be a welcomed sight behind the ball from any lie.

How Does it Feel?

Did I mention these are light? As stated, the F-Max irons are light and you feel it as soon as you took the club away. Cobra makes a point to clarify that these irons are made for a moderate swing speed. With a faster swing speed, the F-Max could feel too wild. In the hands of the correct swing, the F-Max feels very smooth and easy to swing. Good shots feel very lively off the face with a smooth feel. It was pointed out to me by a tester that clear mishits even had a lively feel. For a player looking for an iron that really make a tough game easier, the F-Max has a nice forgiving and active feel.

How Does it Sound?

The Cobra F-Max iron is designed purely for forgiveness and ease of launch for moderate swing speeds. Irons in this group often have very thin faces with dampening materials in the cavity to control the sound and feel. The F-Max is no exception. As long as you hit anywhere on the grooves, the F-Max produces a “pop” sound. If you miss the grooves, it becomes more of dead slap. As the sole cuts through the turf, it creates a “punch” sound. I personally feel the sound is the F-Max’s one weakness, but I believe it to be a very fair trade off given its strengths.

On-Course Performance

I couldn’t really do a full playing review with the Cobra F-Max irons because, in all honesty, it just wouldn’t be a fair review. I’m not who these irons are geared toward. In order to get a better opinion, I sought out some trustworthy players I thought might be a good fit and asked what they thought of them.

There were really two consistent pieces of feedback that came back. The better players commented that the F-Max was very easy to hit straight and high. They even found they could float nice easy draws with them (draws likely attributed to the offset). The weaker players said they found it easier to launch the ball regardless of how bad of a swing they made. I figured this out to mean, “even the fat shots got going and I really didn’t hit the ball thin.” Watching these players hit these irons, I noticed less shots going right (slice).

It’s important to note that you have to seriously be mindful of swing speed. Being the curious reviewer that I am, I obviously had to hit some shots with these as well. I’ll be honest, I was a hot mess. If you’re a faster swinging, more aggressive player, you’ll to want to be fitted into a more accommodating iron.

Final Thoughts

Nice and easy swings are exactly what the Cobra F-Max irons promote. Promoting a nice and easy swing seems perfect for the beginning player or the older player looking to get a little help from their equipment. More importantly, Cobra has created an extremely easy iron to hit straight and get airborne. Sometimes straight and in the air is a better fit than fast and far.

Stock Cobra F-Max Irons Specs

You can find our review of the newer Cobra F-MAX Superlite irons here.